Tough Nut

"Ma... ma..." The overlapping, distorted child's voice echoed through the underground space, carrying the resonance of countless people screaming, cold and bone-chilling. The Holy Child Phantom's pure black pupils locked onto Zhu Shen, so hollow they seemed to suck away all light. It hovered in the center of the altar, beneath the love letter, its pale, three-year-old form appearing exceptionally eerie amidst the dark red evil aura.

Zhu Shen felt a chill shoot from the soles of his feet straight to his crown, his heart hammering wildly. Being called "mom" by this thing? This was even more terrifying than clutching his chest in front of the Pope Palace! He subconsciously touched his face; thankfully, his handsome face was still there. [Ding! Detected that the host has encountered an epic-level fright, triggering a hidden reward: Heart Stress Resistance +5%! Current total heart stress resistance: 25%!] The system's prompt carried a hint of untimely mockery.

"System, shut up! Is now the time for a stress resistance boost?!" Zhu Shen roared internally, his facial muscles stiffening as he struggled to maintain composure. From the corner of his eye, he glanced at the hovering love letter. Under the gaze of the Holy Child Phantom, the envelope vibrated even more violently. Pink light and dark red evil aura intertwined frantically, emitting a harsh, sizzling sound, while the purple patterns on its surface flickered, as if they might explode at any moment.

The Mandala Eye at the back of Tang San's head burned like a branding iron. The excruciating pain from the mental shock turned his face deathly pale, and he barely managed to lean against the cold stone wall to keep from collapsing. He looked at the eerie Holy Child Phantom, then at his teacher's face—which was struggling to maintain a "Grandmaster's demeanor" while actually on the verge of breaking—and sighed for the 103rd time: his teacher's key items always managed to precisely send them into the most lethal situations.

The Holy Child Phantom seemed satisfied with the love letter's reaction. Its pure black pupils rotated slightly, shifting its gaze from Zhu Shen's face to refocus on the violently vibrating pink envelope. It reached out its pale little hand, grasping vaguely toward the letter. An invisible suction force erupted suddenly, and the dark red evil aura on the altar surged toward the love letter as if it had found a vent!

[Warning! "Bibi Dong's Love Letter" is suffering from high-intensity Evil God energy erosion! Item mutation accelerating! Warning: Mutation direction uncontrollable! Please recover the item immediately! Otherwise, it may be permanently destroyed!]

"My love letter! My favorability bonus!" Zhu Shen instantly forgot his fear, his heart aching so much he couldn't breathe. This thing was the key to grinding Bibi Dong's favor! He disregarded the terror of the Holy Child Phantom, the golden light of his Dragon God Body Protection flaring up violently as he braced against the viscous evil aura to charge forward. "Tang San, cover me!"

Tang San endured the mental agony, forcing his Purple Demon Eye to focus. He saw that his teacher's target was the love letter and understood its importance to him (even if the method was absurd). He gave a low shout, and several tough Blue Silver Grass blades snaked along the ground like vipers, silently entangling the altar patterns beneath the Holy Child Phantom in an attempt to disrupt the energy flow. At the same time, he flicked his wrist, and the remaining few poison needles coated in paralyzing powder shot out silently, aiming straight for the Holy Child Phantom's pure black eyes.

The poison needles and Blue Silver Grass withered, melted, and turned to ash the moment they reached three feet from the phantom, as if hitting an invisible wall. The Holy Child Phantom didn't even lift an eyelid; its little hand continued to grasp steadily toward the love letter. The pink light on the surface of the letter dimmed rapidly, while the purple patterns lit up eerily, as if resisting the evil aura, or perhaps struggling to absorb it.

"Damn it! It's useless!" Zhu Shen had already reached the edge of the altar, his dragon claws swiping fiercely at the hovering letter. Just as his fingertips were about to touch the envelope, the Holy Child Phantom turned its head abruptly, its pure black pupils locking onto Zhu Shen once more!

"Ma... ma..." The overlapping, crying voice rose sharply, forming a tangible mental shockwave that slammed into Zhu Shen!

[Warning! Encountered secondary shock from the Holy Child's will! Dragon God Body Protection defense decreased by 50%! Mental resistance check in progress... Check failed! Host has suffered mental shock (moderate)!]

Zhu Shen's head buzzed, his vision blackening as if he had been struck by a giant hammer. His forward momentum stalled instantly, and his body staggered backward uncontrollably. The golden light of his Dragon God Body Protection fluctuated violently, emitting a cracking sound as if under immense strain, and the golden glow flowing beneath his skin dimmed significantly. The lingering warmth of the love letter in his arms now felt bone-chillingly cold.

"Teacher!" Tang San exclaimed, struggling to step forward, but his mental trauma left his movements sluggish.

The Holy Child Phantom seemed "confused" by Zhu Shen's reaction and tilted its head. Taking advantage of this gap, the violently vibrating "Bibi Dong's Love Letter" suddenly erupted with one last burst of intense pink light! Within the light, the purple patterns on the envelope's surface seemed to come alive, spreading instantly and intertwining into an extremely tiny yet exceptionally clear pattern—the phantom of a majestic purple eye!

The moment the eye phantom appeared, the Holy Child Phantom's little hand, reaching for the letter, froze, and for the first time, its pure black pupils showed violent fluctuations! It let out a silent, piercing shriek filled with extreme pain and fear! The evil aura throughout the entire underground space went berserk, and the altar's light flickered erratically!

[Ding! Detected that the "Pope's Will Mark" has been activated! "Bibi Dong's Love Letter" item has triggered its ultimate defense mechanism! Evil God energy erosion interrupted!]

The pink light, carrying the purple eye phantom, slammed into the Holy Child Phantom! There was no earth-shattering explosion, only a light sound like shattering glass. The Holy Child Phantom rippled and distorted violently like a water surface disturbed by a stone; its pale body became transparent, and a human-like fear appeared in its pure black pupils! It jerked its little hand back, drifted backward, and instantly merged into the surging dark red light at the center of the altar, disappearing. The altar's light dimmed drastically, leaving only a faint, flickering dark red glow, and the concentration of the evil aura plummeted.

The pink light and the purple eye phantom on the love letter also dissipated simultaneously, as if they had exhausted all their power. It stopped vibrating and hovered quietly above the altar, but on the originally smooth paper, besides the purple patterns, there were now fine, spiderweb-like dark red cracks, and its overall aura had become weak and chaotic.

[Warning! "Bibi Dong's Love Letter" item severely damaged! Favorability bonus temporarily disabled! New unknown mutation status added: Residual Evil God energy erosion (slight). Warning: Pope's Will Mark energy exhausted!]

Zhu Shen had just recovered from the dizziness of the mental shock. Seeing this, he almost couldn't catch his breath. "My love letter! My favorability! System, can this still be repaired?" He lunged forward and grabbed the falling letter. It felt cold to the touch, devoid of its previous warm, pulsing sensation. The spiderweb-like dark red cracks on the envelope made his heart bleed.

Tang San also breathed a sigh of relief, leaning against the stone wall to catch his breath as the sharp pain in the back of his head eased slightly. "Teacher... it seems to have... run away?" He pointed to the center of the altar, where only faint fluctuations of evil aura remained.

"Run? I think it just retreated!" Zhu Shen gritted his teeth and tucked away the damaged love letter, his heart aching with every movement. He looked around; although the altar was dim, the evil aura hadn't completely vanished, and that red dot was still stubbornly glowing on the system map, though much weaker. "We can't stay in this godforsaken place! Who knows if that thing will pop out again! Tang San, can you move?"

Tang San nodded, forcing himself to stand straight: "I can, Teacher."

Just then, from above, in the direction of the narrow cellar entrance, a burst of noisy footsteps and shouting suddenly erupted, accompanied by the blinding beam of a soul-guiding lamp shining down!

"People below! We are the Spirit City patrol! Stop resisting immediately, put your hands on your heads, and come up!" It was the voice of the patrol captain from before, sounding suspicious and stern.

Zhu Shen's face turned green. Great, just as they escaped the Holy Child Phantom, they were cornered by the patrol! In the middle of the night, covered in dirt, standing next to an eerie altar emitting evil aura... how was he supposed to explain this? Say they were conducting an in-depth follow-up project on night-time martial soul research (dancing)? Who would believe that!

Tang San also looked at Zhu Shen nervously. Zhu Shen took a deep breath, his face, which the system had certified as 20% thicker, tightening once more. He quickly straightened his collar, patted the dust off his clothes (though with little effect), and instantly switched his expression to a complex mix of "surprise," "lingering fear," and "academic fanaticism," shouting toward the blinding beam of light above:

"Thank goodness! Officers of the patrol! You've arrived just in time! We just discovered a secret stronghold of an Evil Soul Master! Right here underground! Hurry! Come down quickly! This altar is strange; there was an energy eruption just now! We, Yu Xiaogang of Notting Academy, are in dire need of your support!"

As he shouted, he winked at Tang San, signaling him to cooperate. Tang San silently lowered his head, struggling to suppress the urge to roll his eyes: his teacher's ability to lie through his teeth was truly becoming more and more masterful.

The patrol captain, holding the soul-guiding lamp, froze in mid-air, his mouth twitching violently once again. His subordinates looked at each other, their expressions colorful. The awkward dancing from earlier was still fresh in their minds, and now they had "discovered a stronghold" next to an underground evil altar? This Grandmaster from Notting Academy had a style that was just too... unique! The captain took a deep breath, looked at Zhu Shen's face, which was trying hard to appear "sincere" and "urgent," and at the half-grown child beside him who looked like he had lost all hope in life, and finally gritted his teeth, squeezing a sentence through his teeth:

"...Guard the entrance! You two, come up with me and let's take a look! Everyone else, stay alert! Notify for reinforcements!"